Deception
by Kurleetop
Summary: Join Ben Skywalker and four Padawans on the journey of a lifetime! (MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU! May 4, 2014)
1. Friends

Chapter 1

I looked at the stone and reached out in the force. Nothing happened. I looked up, hoping that no one saw my failure and grimaced as I looked at the stone again. I thought "WHY CAN'T YOU JUST GET UP AND MOVE?!" Frustrated, I dropped my gaze and began tapping on my thigh. As I tapped, the stone lifted off of the table and launched its self at the wall. I looked up and gasped. The instructor looked around, trying to see who had thrown the stone. I blocked her view of my empty desk with my hand and pretended to concentrate on the stone that was no longer there. I looked up again and found him staring at my best friend, Leni'sema. I smirked and reached out to Leni in the Force, causing her to start. She looked up and noticed Master Ben Skywalker staring at her. She turned her head in my direction and gave me a dirty look. I smiled and made a heart with my small hands. She scowled and shook her head, causing her pale blue lekku to rock methodically back and forth, brushing her thin neck as they moved. I grinned. Master Skywalker was smiling too, though, neither of us noticed.

After our lesson, Leni and I headed to the dining hall for the midday meal break. As soon as we entered the hall, a wave of danger sense rolled up my spine. I looked around for the source of the unease, but found none. I shrugged it off and got in line for food. I turned to look at Leni and noticed that she was staring at one of the Jedi Knights that had been put on "Food Duty". Her gaze shifted to me and she smiled. "What's wrong?" I asked.

"Nothing. Everything is fine. Why do you ask, Briki?" was Leni's response.

It was too simple for Leni. If it had been anyone else, I might have overlooked it, but I knew Leni and she was more complex than that. I grabbed the loose arm of her robe and pulled her close. I leaned even closer to her and whispered, "Leni, what the black empty void did you sense?"

"I'll tell you later. Drop it for now," she replied, semi-reluctantly.

By the time "later" arrived, my mind was racing with the worst possible scenarios. Leni pulled me into an empty corridor and whispered, "Sith," as if it were a curse. The unnatural sound of the word on her tongue frightened me. Again, I felt the wave of danger sense and spun on my heel to find Kandra Dailie, the Jedi that Leni had been staring at while we were in line for food. I smiled at Kandra. Leni shot a wary glance at her. I jabbed her in the ribs with my elbow and she smiled and nodded. "Hello Kandra. How are you?" I asked.

"Fine and you?" Kandra replied smoothly, ignoring Leni's wary gaze.

"Fine we-"my sentence was cut off when Leni interrupted with, "We have to get to class. Maybe we can talk later."

I waved at Kandra and made a face that, I hoped, conveyed apology as Leni pulled me down the hallway, towards our next class.

That night, I sat in bed, unable to sleep. I began to think about Kandra and the single word Leni had whispered in the corridor earlier. Kandra was the most beautiful Padawan girl. Her hair was long and dark. She often wore it in a braid that reached over half way down her back. When she moved, the braid swung back and forth, often swinging over one of her thin shoulders. Not only was Kandra beautiful, but she was also extremely nice. Kandra was most definitely not a Sith. Why would Leni imply that? It was rude, and if there was one word that Leni was not, it was rude. That meant that either Leni really believed that Kandra was a Sith, or she was going crazy.

I must have fallen asleep at some point because I woke up to the sound of alarms ringing through the hallway outside of my room. I quickly dressed and ran into the hallway to see what was happening. I was shoved down the hallway as hundreds of Padawans and frightened-looking Younglings rushed towards the main hall. I was able to hook my finger around my brother, Sayaar'kemi's loose sleeve. His blue lekku twitched in surprise and he spun to face me. I pulled him into a small corridor leading off of the main hallway, and asked what was going on. His only response was a small shake of his head and a look that said 'I'm sorry.' I grimaced and followed him back into the flow of beings, all headed for the main hall.

We had been standing in the main hall for at least twenty minutes when the sirens stopped. I leaned over to Leni and whispered, "Why did the alarms stop?"

She smirked and whispered, "Thanks for asking the obvious question, Briki."

I scowled and walked over to Master Skywalker. His response was much more helpful. He told me that someone had set off a thermal detonator in the Archives and stolen a ship to escape. I thanked him and slowly, cautiously walked towards Leni. I was thinking as I walked. Who would want to damage or destroy Jedi archives? Maybe the bomber wanted to escape, and, because the archives and hangar are so far apart, set off the detonator to distract the Jedi from the unscheduled departure of a ship. If it had been a large ship, it would make sense, but no one would question a small ship departing the Jedi temple and so why distract the Jedi? Maybe the bomber-

My train of thought was cut off as a laser barrage came out of nowhere and destroyed one of the large viewports in the main hall. Laser fire came hurtling through the broken viewport. The air smelled of superheated metal as the fire hit the back wall of the large room. Through the commotion of people rushing to get out, I heard Leni, Sayaar, and Jacmi, Sayaar's best friend, calling my name. I ran to them and began pushing through the crowd to leave when Leni grabbed my arm. I spun on my heel and saw that Jacmi and Sayaar were pushing through the crowd, but not towards the exit, towards the viewport! I ran after them, shoving through the panicked crowd of Jedi, with Leni close behind. Jacmi pulled Sayaar to a stop when he saw Leni and I chasing them. Within seconds, I reached them. All that anyone said was "JUMP!"

I jumped, and was surprised when my feet soon found a solid surface. I crouched and used the force to anchor myself in place on the rectangular shape of the Stealth X's wing. The cockpit was airtight and the pilot was probably leaving Courscant, which meant that we would be forced to jump off, or die in the vacuum of space, or…

I signaled to Leni to ignite her lightsaber. I plunged the tip of my lightsaber into the transparasteel. The cockpit was no longer airtight. I looked down into the face of the pilot, and found myself looking into the eyes of Kandra Dailie. "KANDRA?!" four voices said the name at once, all sounding confused and slightly angry.

Leni looked up from Kandra's angry eyes and said "Now is probably a bad time, but I told you so, Briki."

"Yeah. Bad timing," I shot back.

That was when the Stealth X began to spin and twitch beneath our feet. None of us realized that Kandra was trying to throw us off until it was too late. I felt my feet fly out from beneath me and I fell backwards, into the forest of skyscrapers and speeders.


	2. The New Guy

Chapter 2

When I awoke, I felt as if an overweight rancor had been sitting on me. The fact that I awoke, is in itself, a miracle beyond definition. I took a deep breath and smelled the chemicals and sanitizer that could only be found in a med bay. I reached up and rubbed my neck as I slowly looked around. To med-droids, it would appear that I was stretching my neck, but I was really looking for my friends. Instantly, I spotted my brother and Leni, but I didn't see Jacmi. I waved over a droid and asked it where the 'Human boy involved in the Stealth X incident was.' In its monotone droid voice, it said, "The Jedi you refer to is named Jacmi Pattel. Am I correct?"

I nodded and it continued, "He did not fare as well as you three," it gestured to Sayaar and Leni, "He is currently undergoing surgery. After surgery, he will be put in a Bacta tank."

"How long have I been unconscious?" I asked the droid.

"Not long Ma'am. Precisely 6 days, 21 hours, and 37 minutes," It replied cheerfully, "I predicted that you would be unconscious for at least ten days."

I groaned and sat up. My head began to spin and my vision blurred. I decided to lie back down. I asked, "Did I have any major head injury?"

The droid's response was, "Yes ma'am, you have a concussion. You also had a serious fracture in your upper right leg and a dislocated shoulder. However, I have been able to repair those with minor surgery and a day in a Bacta tank. Sayaar'kemi, your brother, had two broken ribs, a broken forearm, and a broken toe. He must have fallen head first. Leni'sema, the other Twi'lek female, had a concussion and serious leg injuries. She probably tried to land on her feet. The concussion came from falling after landing."

I grunted, not really caring what their injuries were, as long as they would live. I began to think about how far Kandra could've gotten in seven days. She could be on another planet by now, she had a ship. Although, the cockpit was not airtight. I had stabbed it with my lightsaber. She would've had to land somewhere and either fix the hole or get a new ship. She was, more than likely, still on Courscant. The only problem was that I wouldn't be going anywhere for a while, and neither would Leni, Sayaar, or Jacmi. My thoughts were interrupted when Master Skywalker walked up to my cot and said, "Padawan, you showed great courage back there. I would like to congratulate you and your friends on your great deed. I realize that it is a bit informal, but I spoke with the rest of the council and they agreed to promote you all to Jedi Knights. You acted as a true Jedi should. As for Kandra, she was able to escape, but is definitely on Courscant."

My surprise rippled through the force. I felt my jaw drop and my eyes widen. I wanted, so badly, to reach up and hug Master Skywalker. He must've sensed my pleasure, because he smiled. I tried to sit up again and I winced as pain shot through my head and blackness began to cloud the edges of my vision. I ignored the pain and slid back, so that my back was up against the headboard of the bed. I looked up at Jedi Master and Council Member, Ben Skywalker, Grandson of the Chosen One, and saw a tousled mop of red hair, fair skin with dozens of small freckles, and bright blue eyes. He was very attractive, by human standards, anyway.

Soon after he had left, I tried to stand. Once I was on my feet, I began to assess my injuries. My injured leg was stiff and felt weak, my head was swimming, and my shoulder ached, as if it wasn't fully healed. I took a tentative step forward, and noting that my legs didn't collapse under my weight, I began to walk towards the Bacta Tanks. Jacmi's tank was the fourth tank from the end of the row. The first one contained a Mirialan female, who looked as if someone had repeatedly punched her face, the second was a Zabrak female with bruised knuckles and claw marks up her arms and on her face. The third was a Human male, with sandy brown hair and a square jaw. He was covered in bruises and scratches. It appeared that the two females had been fighting and the male stepped in to separate them. Perhaps they were fighting over him. I realized that that was ridiculous and that I was just a hopeless romantic. Leni would've been laughing at me right now.

I stood outside of Jacmi's Bacta Tank, staring at his limp, bruised, form float aimlessly around in the clear, blue liquid that held him. My gaze shifted to the reflection in the glass of the tank. I saw someone behind me. I spun on my heel and found a tall boy, probably about my age, with a muscular build, tan skin, and dirty blonde hair, standing a few feet away from me. I looked at him, shocked that I hadn't sensed him come up behind me. I spoke, "Hello. Can I help you?"

"Not really, but I saw you looking in the tanks and wondered if you knew where you were going," he replied, nonchalantly.

"Yeah. I know. This is my friend, Jacmi. I'm Briki, and you are?"

"Timothy, but I go by Tim."

"So, are you a healer… or just here for no reason?"

"No, I'm not a healer. The Human in the tank over there is my friend, Daniel. The two girls were fighting and he stepped in to stop. The Mirialan is Athecc Sadalbari and the Zabrak is Lalcea Hearn. I don't know what they were fighting about though."

I nodded and he said, "So, what happened to you and your friend Jacmi?"

"Well, we fell off of a Stealth X and landed on the roof of a skyscraper, ninety meters below us."

"Ouch. What did you do that for?"

"Fun, obviously," my voice dripped with sarcasm.

Grinning, he leaned back on a nearby counter and laughed. "Seriously, though," he said through his laughter, "Why were you on a Stealth X, anyway?"

I sighed and when I spoke my voice sounded tired and weak, "We were trying to stop a girl named Kandra Dailie from escaping. You remember the alarms, a few days ago, right? Well, they were a diversion so that Kandra could get away. I have no clue why, though."

His cheery demeanor seemed to vanish into thin air. He let out a long breath and said, "I heard a rumor that she had turned to the Dark Side of the Force, and that her Master… or whatever the Sith call their teachers, is Vestara Khai. Do you know who that is?"

"No. I don't know who that is. I was totally born yesterday," my voice was no longer dripping sarcasm, it was pouring it.

Tim scowled mockingly at me. "Well, someone's snippy today."

As soon as the comment left his mouth, I burst into laughter. The comment wasn't horribly funny, but I needed to relieve the tension that had been building inside me since I had woken up. He looked at me with a smile in his gray-green eyes and a scowl on his lips. "What is so funny? I just pointed out the obvious. It's not like I told you an award winning joke or anything."

As soon as he said it, though, he burst into laughter. We stood there, laughing, for who-knows-how-long.

Once he had left, I went back to my cot. The world was spinning again, but I doubted that it was from the concussion. Tim had been exceptionally handsome. I wondered if I would see him again, anytime soon. I rolled my eyes at that thought, knowing that if I had never seen him before, he must be a Jedi knight or, at least, not a Padawan. It hit me that I was no longer a Padawan, and therefore, if he was a Knight, I would be seeing a lot more of him. For some unknown reason, the idea of seeing him again made my heart skip a beat. Hopeless romantic, indeed.


	3. Being a Knight

Chapter 3

"Jedi Briki'Fiind. Jedi Leni'Sema. Jedi Sayaar'Kemi. Jedi Jacmi Pattel," I repeated the names in my quarters, trying to make them sound like they belong. It was three months after the 'Stealth X incident' and I was no longer 'Padawan Fiind'. I was 'Jedi Fiind'. I had a new title and possibly, a new identity. I could've been the quiet girl, or the tough girl, or even the innocent girl who trusts everyone. No. Not the innocent girl. After what happened with Kandra I could never place all of my trust in everyone, trust is to be earned. Not only can you earn someone's trust, but you can also lose their trust. Kandra lost mine.

If I hadn't still been trying to regain the muscles in my leg and arm, I would've been out in the galaxy searching for her. No one had seen or heard anything about her since the incident. The Jedi were not even considering that Kandra a threat anymore. I knew that she was. If they didn't go looking for her, something terrible would happen. I began to think about the stories of the being called Abeloth. Every day, when I looked outside, I saw more than skyscrapers and speeders. I see the remnants of buildings knocked down by a monstrous volcano. I see over grown plants that were said to once have been carnivorous. Most importantly, I see the silhouette of the Jedi temple, still standing, tall and strong, in reflections and shadows on the nearby buildings.

I nearly fell out of my chair when someone knocked at my door. I checked the chrono and saw that I didn't have to be anywhere for a while. Who would want to talk to me, other than Leni, Sayaar, or Theo, none of whom came by unless we needed to go somewhere? I got up and cautiously moved towards the door. When I reached it, I opened it and found a tall human male with a muscular build, tan skin, and dirty blonde hair standing in the hallway. Looking at his datapad, he said, "Hello. I am Jedi Bencen. I will be helping you adjust to the Jedi Knight lifestyle. Do you have any questions about being a Jedi Knight?"

"Yes, I have a very important question. Isn't your name 'Timothy, but you go by Tim', not Jedi Bencen?" I said with an expression that, I hoped, looked completely confused.

Without looking up, he monotonously replied, "Yes, it is, but you will call me Jedi Benc- Wait a minute," He slowly looked up from the datapad, and seeing who was standing in the doorway, burst into laughter. I grinned and motioned for him to step into my quarters.

We took a seat at the small table that I used for breakfast. I leaned back and ran my slender fingers over the nerf-leather straps that were wrapped loosely around my lekku. "So, you are my 'Being a Jedi Knight' handbook?" I asked.

He smiled and said, "I suppose I am. I was supposed to tell you that you need to pack up all of your belongings. You are moving into the Knights' Dormitories. I'll be back in three hours to help move your items. I will have someone bring boxes for you. How many do you think you will need?"

"Hmmm... Maybe seven or eight. I don't have a lot. Will furniture be provided?"

"Yeah, it will be. Oh, and you will be able to have more when you are a Knight. It will take longer to move from Knight to Master than from Padawan to Knight, assuming that you eventually become a master."

"Well, thanks. You probably have to be someone else's 'Being a Jedi Knight' handbook. I'll see you later."

"Yep, I'll see you in three hours."

"Bye."

"Bye."

Once he was gone, I began to take my few belongings out of the closet, drawers, and off of the shelves. I had just finished removing my belongings from the dorm when the boxes arrived. There were eight of them, just like I had asked for. I brought them into the bedroom and began to pack. As I worked, I developed a system: grab something, put it in the box, grab, box, grab, box, grab, box, close the box, get another box, start again. Once the system had been secured into my memory, my mind began to drift.

In two hours, I would see Tim again. My heart skipped a beat at the idea of seeing him again. It seemed odd to like him. First, he was a human and I typically did not find humans attractive. Second, he was my superior and, probably instructor. I didn't want to be singled out. Either way, I liked him and there was nothing anyone could do about it.

The two hours passed without any special events and when I heard a knock at my door, I jumped out of the chair that I had been sitting in, and ran to answer it. Anxiously, I pressed the button to open the door. I found Ti- 'Jedi Bencen' standing on the other side. Smiling, I invited him inside. He stepped in and smiled back. Neither of us said anything. I guided him into the bedroom, where the boxes waited on the floor. He nodded in approval and said, "Follow me. I'll take you to your new room."


	4. Boy Troubles

I followed Tim down the dim corridor. I smelled some sort of incense. It was sweet and made me feel as if I was walking on a cloud. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. When I opened them again, I realized that we had stopped. I looked around and noticed that we had arrived at my new quarters. I smiled gratefully and tapped the controls to open the door. Tim followed me inside and handed me a datapad. I gasped. It was the newest model and probably extremely expensive. Where did the Jedi get the money for these? If I got one, it meant that every new Jedi Knight got one. So, I asked Tim. He turned towards me and looked me in the eye. He said, "Briki, the Jedi Order didn't get you that datapad. I did."

My eyes widened and I gasped. I couldn't think of words to describe how grateful I was. All I could do was lean in and wrap my arms around his lean frame. I felt his arms wrap around me and took a deep breath, breathing in his scent. He smelled sweet with cologne. I took another breath, wanting to remember this moment forever. I felt his strong arms tighten around my waist and pull me closer. I allowed myself to be drawn in. I looked up into Tim's chocolate brown eyes and felt my heart stop. I reached up, removing my arms from his waist and wrapped them around his neck. He leaned forward and our lips touched. I reached up and entwined my fingers in his hair. He ran his strong hands down my sides and rested them on my hips. I melted against him and allowed him support my small figure. My arms went from his neck to the small of his back and I grabbed the hem of his shirt, as if to pull myself even closer. I felt his warm hands caress my back. Reluctantly, I pulled my mouth from his. He smiled patiently at me and I smiled back. I stepped back and said, "Thank you."

It took me hours to fall asleep that night. I kept thinking back to what had happened in the hallway earlier. Why had I made the first move? The girl wasn't supposed to do that. Did I ruin our relationship? Wait?! RELATIONSHIP? I'm in a RELATIONSHIP with Tim? No! That's ridiculous! He's just a friend… but if he were just a friend, why did we kiss? Did I kiss him or did he kiss me? Again, Briki, you made the first move. Stupid, stupid, stupid! But… if it were that stupid, why didn't he push me away? He almost welcomed it…

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard a soft knocking on my door. I climbed out of bed, wearing no more than a tank-top and a pair of extremely short shorts, and walked to the door. As I peeked through the peephole, I saw a tall, blue-green figure standing in the hallway. I opened the door and allowed Leni'Sema to come in. I looked at her and said, "Leni, it is the middle of the night. Why are you here? I was TRYING to sleep."

Leni laughed and said, "I came here to talk. I haven't seen much of you since the 'Kandra' incident. Plus, I couldn't sleep either. These rooms are too big. They're kind of creepy in the dark."

"Well, you can sleep on my couch if you want, but I'd probably be getting up in an hour or so, so let's just talk. Have you met Ti-uh… Jedi Bencen?"

It was hard for me to call him that, but I knew that he wouldn't introduce himself to new Knights as 'Tim'. Leni continued, as if she had not heard me almost call him Tim. "Yep! He's attractive too."

"Mmm…"  
"What? Do you think he is ugly or something?"

"No, but what you said about him having a girlfriend is too true. I wish it wasn't, but it is."

I smiled to myself. Was I that girlfriend?

"Yeah…"

"Maybe you should get some rest while I take a sanisteam. It won't take long, but today is our first day of training and some rest would be better than none."


	5. A Boy, A Friend, and A Secret

Chapter 5

9 hours later, I found myself sitting in a corner of the training area with Leni, Jacmi, and Sayaar. I was drenched in sweat and panting as if there was not enough oxygen in the galaxy to refill my lungs. I had just regained the ability to speak when Tim came over from his training group. He had just finished sparring and had barely broken a sweat. I looked up at him and smiled. He smiled back, but not just at me, at all four of us. I felt hurt to have not been the center of his attention, but I understood. He helped us up, one by one, and told us that it gets easier with practice. He led us to the sparring dummies and taught us a few very important things about lightsabers, or at least, I think it we were learning about lightsabers. Whenever he spoke, I seemed to leave reality and go somewhere where I could be the girlfriend that Leni and I had talked about.

About half way through training with Tim, Sayaar nudged me and said something that, snapped me out of my daydream. I looked at him and whispered, "What?"

He leaned over and replied, "I asked if you understood. I do, but it looked as if you were either confused or daydreaming, but now I know that you were daydreaming."

I smiled at him and looked back to Tim. Tim must've seen Sayaar and I talking because he looked at me as if he wanted to know what had been said. I shook my head very slightly and smiled at him. He went on as if nothing had happened.

Later that day, I was sitting in my new dormitory room and I heard a knock at the door. I had had quite a few guests in the past few days, I reflected as I went to answer the door. When I opened it, I saw Tim. He was as attractive as ever and looked as if he had just stepped out of the shower. His hair was damp and he had no shirt on. I could see the muscles all over his body tense when I opened the door. I allowed him to enter and we sat at the foot of my bed. I asked, "What brings you here?"

His response was, "I was just wondering what you had been talking about with your brother earlier… I guess it's none of my business, but I was-"

I interrupted him and said, "Let me guess, you wanted a reason to come talk to me."

He laughed, "Actually, yes. I've been wanting to talk to you, but I've been so busy lately…"

"I understand. I've been thinking about what happened the other night a lot."

"Me too. But more than that, I've been thinking about you."

This made me tense, but not in a bad way. I was happy and excited to hear that Tim had been thinking about me. So, I said, "Oh. What have you been thinking?"

"Mostly about how much I like you. I've also been thinking about how I would like to repeat that night…"

"Me too…"

He placed his hand on the side of my face and looked into my eyes. I smiled and he pulled me closer and closer, until our mouths met in a kiss. I felt the water from his hair drip down my forehead, but I ignored it. I would enjoy this moment if it killed me.

We were still kissing when I heard a knock at my door. I pulled away from Tim and called, "Who is it?"

The response was, "Leni! Let me in!"

I grimaced and called, "Leni, not now. I'm really tired and don't really want to talk."

"Briki, I've seen you when you were sick, when you were sleeping, I've even seen you when you were naked. Do you really think 'too tired' is a good excuse?"

When Leni said 'naked' Tim looked me up and down, as if trying to figure out how I would look without clothes on. I shot him a look that said 'dream on'. Leni called through the door, "Briki! Unlock this stupid door already!"

"Fine. Just give me a minute!"

I grabbed Tim's hand and dragged him into the refresher compartment. I warned him to be quiet and shut the refresher door. Then I invited Leni inside. We talked for hours. By the time Leni left, I had almost forgotten about Tim. Of course, that was both a good and bad thing. It helped me hide him from Leni, but some of the things that had been said were not exactly what you wanted someone to overhear.

As soon as Leni left, Tim popped out of the refresher, smiling. I glowered at him. "Did you hear all of that?" I said.

"No. I only heard some…" he said with a sly grin.

"What did you hear?" I shot back.

"Something about Leni's 'Dream Boyfriend' and maybe a little about yours…"

Now I was mad. "Look, I know I locked you in a refresher, but you don't have to eavesdrop on my conversations!"

"Well, I wasn't eavesdropping, I was just bored and happened to overhear. I didn't intentionally listen to you."

I wasn't mad anymore. I was furious. I reached up and slapped him. Hard. The palm of my hand hit him square in the jaw and caused his flesh to turn red. I shouted, "Maybe I shouldn't have let you into my room in the first place! Maybe I shouldn't have let you into my life!"

Between his red, swollen cheek and the hurt in his eyes, he looked so pathetic. I instantly regretted my words and reached out to grab his hand and apologize, but he turned to face away from me and said, "Briki, it wouldn't have made a difference if you wanted me in your life or not when we first met, but now, I need you. I've gotten to know you and I love you. Yes. I said it. I LOVE YOU, BRIKI'FIIND! I would say it to the galaxy on a live holonet feed if I could because it's so true. I used to think love was something fictional, something only found in books for children, but I know now that I was wrong. I was wrong because I found love."

By the end of his speech, hot tears were running down both of our faces. I looked up at him and kissed him. At first, he seemed surprised, but after a moment, I felt him relax. He picked me up, one arm under my legs and the other supporting my neck. We remained like that, hugging and kissing, for what seemed to be forever. I tasted the salt from our tears and pulled myself even closer to him. His muscular frame curled around me, like a living blanket. That is the last thing I remember.

At some point, we must've fallen asleep because I awoke to the continuous beeping of my alarm clock and the hiss of the sanisteam. As I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes, I climbed out of bed and waddled to the refresher door. Seeing that it was closed, I knocked. I heard the hiss of the water snap off and the rustling of fabric against skin. I knocked again, and this time, I said, "Um… Tim? Are you in there?"

"Hmmm? Oh, yeah. I hope you don't mind me using your refresher, but when I got up, I didn't even think about it. Sorry."

"No, it's fine. Um… do you mind if I ask you a question? It might seem a little weird at first…"

"Don't worry. Go ahead and ask."  
I sighed and leaned up against the wall. "Ok. What, exactly, happened last night? I mean, what was that?"

"Hmmm… I guess you could call it young love. If you mean 'did either of us do anything embarrassing or stupid', the answer is no."

"Ok. Do you need me to get you clothes? I really doubt that you would fit mine and I don't have any of yours."

"No. It's fine. I'll get them later."

He opened the door and emerged wearing a pair of loose fitting pants and no shirt. Exactly what he had worn last night. "Huh. I guess that will work."

"It better, or else I will end up walking down three corridors and down two flights of stairs without clothes."  
"I don't know, I know a lot of people who would LOVE to see that."

"Yeah, well, I wouldn't want them to see that."

"You are absolutely no fun," I checked the clock, "It's almost time for breakfast and I still need to take a sanisteam. Oh and Leni, Sayaar, and Jacmi will be here soon. We always meet up to walk to breakfast."

Tim laughed and said, "Ok. I'm hurrying."

Another hour passed before Leni, Sayaar, and Jacmi came and Tim had been gone for more than forty-five minutes. As we walked to breakfast, Sayaar and Jacmi pushed ahead and began to talk about training. Behind them, Leni and I continued our conversation from last night.

"So, if you were his girlfriend, what do you think he would be like? I mean, he seems nice when he's around all of us, but what would he be like one-on-one?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. Ask his girlfriend."  
"You know who she is? Tell me! I must know!"

"Yeah. I know who she is, but I can't tell you. She made me keep it a secret."

"Oh. So she is evil. Is she Kandra?"

"That's not funny."

"Yes it is! Lighten up! You've been so dull lately. What's up?"

"I'll tell you later. Ok?"

"I guess it's ok. I'd rather hear now, though."

"Well, now won't work for me. We don't have training today, so meet me in the archives later, ok?"

Leni let out an exasperated sigh. "_FINE. _If I must!"

I laughed and we continued to breakfast.


	6. The Attack

Later, in the newly repaired Archives, Leni and I sat in the corner farthest away from the doors. She looked at me, hopefully, but I looked at her as if she were my executioner. After a long silence, she said, "Ok Briki. You promised that you would tell me later in the Archives. Well, here we are. It's later and we're in the archives."

I sighed and tried to avoid looking her in the eye. "I suppose I did promise… but does 'later' have to be now?"

"Are you hiding something from me? I'm your best friend. You should be able to trust me with ANYTHING!"

I shrugged and looked away from Leni. "I'm not saying that we're not best friends. I'm just saying that I'm not sure I'm ready to tell you."

Leni sighed. "Leni, if you really want to know, come to my quarters tonight. I promise that I will tell you, but I think I need a little bit more time to 'prepare'," I said.

"Briki, you sound like you are about to tell me that you're dying. You're not dying are you?!"

I laughed a little, "No. I am most definitely not dying. In fact, it's exactly the opposite. I've found a wonderful reason to live."

She smiled, "Good."

That night, Leni never came. I waited up for hours, but eventually fell asleep on the couch. I awoke to a firm knock on my door. I quickly sat up and threw on some loose robes, assuming that it was a master that had come to discipline me for being late to class. When I opened the door, I found that I was correct that a master was standing outside my door, but my reasoning was very far off. I opened the door, only to find the cool, blue eyes of Master Ben Skywalker. I bowed my head. "Good morning master. I apologize for taking so long to answer the door, but I was asleep."

He smiled, "Asleep, as you should've been. It is very early Jedi Fiind. I have come to inform you that your friend, Leni'Sema has been attacked and severely injured. I know how close you are and I assumed that you would've liked to know."

My eyes widened and my breathing sped up, "M-Master Skywalker, do you know who attacked her?"

He took a deep breath and slowly, said, "No. Her attacker has not yet been confirmed, but we assume that it was the Sith. The only known Sith are Kandra Dailie and her master, who I assume to be my former lover, Vestara Khai."

I gasped in surprise. "I don't mean to intrude in your personal affairs, but who is this Vestara Khai?"

"Vestara is one of the only remaining Sith of the Lost Tribe. I'm sure you've heard of the Tribe. Of course, at the time I met her, I was sixteen. At first, I didn't know what to think of her. The only Sith I had met was Darth Caedaeus, Master Solo's twin brother. He was extremely violent, but Vestara didn't seem to be any more violent than myself. As we got to know each other, we fell in love. After some time, Abeloth convinced Vestara's father to kill her. She ended up killing him. After that, she began moving into the light. I knew it was too good to be true, however, when Master Solo, my father, and I were betrayed by her on Abeloth's home planet in the Maw. That was the last time I saw her. It was over ten years ago, but I felt something familiar in Kandra when she took off in the Stealth-X. I can't figure out what it was, though."

I stood there, astonished. After taking a moment to recompose myself, I looked up into his fair, freckled face and said, "Master Skywalker, may I see Leni?"

In the infirmary, I stood at Leni's bedside, waiting for her to wake up. It had barely been two hours and I was in hysterics. I was kneeling by Leni, crying, and shaking her arm hard enough to dislocate it. On top of that, I was almost screaming 'Wake up! Wake up, Leni! You're going to miss breakfast! You're going to be late for training!'.

After another hour of screaming and crying, I felt a strong, yet clammy hand clamp down on my right shoulder. I spun on whoever had dared to touch me, smacking them in the chest. It took me a moment to realize that the one that had grabbed my shoulder had been Sayaar. I stood up and wrapped my arms around him. I squeezed him hard enough to make him grunt in pain, but I didn't loosen my grip. I needed to hold something, or someone. I needed to know that I wasn't alone.

When I finally woke up, I was in a stiff chair, facing Leni's bed and Sayaar was sprawled out on the cold hospital floor. I shivered and ran a hand over my lekku. I rose, listening to my bones pop as I moved. I inched my way towards Leni, being careful not to step on Sayaar. When I reached her bedside, I grabbed her hand and squeezed. A moment later, I felt slight pressure on my hand. Had she squeezed back? I took a deep breath and decided that I wouldn't be able to conclude that she could feel it until she responded to other things, so I said, "Leni, if you can hear me, squeeze my hand."

Pressure. I gasped and took a step backwards, tripping on Sayaar and crashing to the ground. He yelped in pain and shoved me off of him. I apologized and we both sat up. I grinned and said, "Leni squeezed my hand! I squeezed her hand and she squeezed mine back. Then, I told her to squeeze my hand and she did!"

"Geez, Briki! I think you're over reacting. The med-droids and healers said that Leni would be semi-responsive, but unable to move most of her body for a while. I guess that means that she can squeeze your hand, but that's probably it."

"Thanks for crushing my hopes and dreams. Anyway, I was also looking at her injuries and they were all caused by lightsabers, which we already knew, but they were all near her midsection. I guess that doesn't mean much to you, but I've trained against her so much that I know that when she defends herself against a lightsaber, she angles the blade wrong so that the attacker's blade goes into her midsection. Judging by these gashes, the attacker, aka Kandra, knew this and used it to her advantage. Kandra probably swung at Leni's head, knowing that if she swung at the right angle, she could hit a vital organ."

Sayaar looked thoughtfully at Leni, and a moment later, said, "You're probably right, but why do you think Kandra would've come and not Vestara or whoever her Master is? I mean, Kandra was probably supposed to kill Leni, but she didn't. Wouldn't it have been more certain that Leni died if the master came? Also, does the fact that Kandra came to kill Leni mean anything for us?"

I hadn't thought about our fates. What if Kandra was coming to wipe out anyone who had attacked her and prevented her from leaving Courscant? If that were the case, we all would die.


	7. The Kitchen

Chapter 7

No one was attacked for the next few weeks, but three weeks after Leni was hurt, Jacmi was poisoned. No one was sure how, but it was assumed that someone had snuck something into his food. If the poison had been in his food, the attacker would need extensive knowledge of Jedi Temple layout. Again, the evidence pointed at Kandra.

The only thing that suggested that it was someone else was the type of poison. Sayaar was poisoned with a very rare type of poison. It was Bastyl, a chemical originally found in a gaseous state in the thin atmosphere of an asteroid. A sample of it was taken to a lab on Corellia, but in the warmer atmosphere, it changed into a liquid. This liquid is toxic to most species. It causes extreme nausea, fatigue, loss of vision, confusion, and once the poison reaches your bloodstream, death.

Jacmi had all of the symptoms of the poisoning. However, It took the healers a very long time to recognize the poison because of the symptoms being so similar to those of the flu, but they did and managed to, barely, save Jacmi's life. Unfortunately, Jacmi and Leni were both stuck in the med bay and unable to help with the search for Kandra that would begin within the next week. Master Skywalker found it crucial to have at least one of us come look for her. So we devised a plan to keep Sayaar and I safe.

The plan was to have a Jedi Master and a Jedi Knight stay with Sayaar and I at all times to protect us. When we went to bed they would hide themselves in the force, giving the illusion that Sayaar and I were all alone. Because this was the only time that we were alone, the Sith would attack. The only problem was that if the Sith attacked before Sayaar and I were asleep, they would sense our nervousness and know that it all was a trap. The only problem that I had with the plan was that I would be unable to speak with Tim.

It was around 12:00 GST, 5 days after Jacmi's poisoning, I was in the cafeteria, waiting in line to be served when a tingle of danger sense shot up my spine. I cautiously looked around, but I saw no threats, so I closed my eyes and reached out in the force. I sensed something, but I couldn't tell who or what it was. The presence felt empty, like the force user was trying to hide it altogether. The Force user was failing.

I reached out again, this time taking time to search every aspect of the presence. I had almost decided that it was nothing serious when I saw Master Solo and Master Skywalker sit up straight and turn towards the kitchen. I reached out to Master Skywalker in the Force. He felt my touch and turned to look at me. I glanced at the door to the kitchen and then back at him. He nodded, understanding what I was asking.

I slipped out of line and began working my way casually towards the door. Once I had arrived at my destination, I opened the door and stepped inside. To my left, there was a rack of aprons and hairnets, and a bottle of sanitizer. I slipped an apron on, ignored the hairnets (Being a Twi'lek, I have no hair), and slid my hand underneath the sanitizer dispenser, collecting a dollop of the scentless liquid.

To my right was the hustling mess that was known as the Jedi Temple kitchen. Before continuing into the mess of bodies and foods, I reached out into the Force, searching for the presence that I had sensed no more than three minutes ago. Almost immediately, I found it. The owner of the presence was still trying, and failing, to hide themselves. It took me a moment, but I was able to find the region of the kitchen in which the being was hiding. I stepped into the hustle of beings and slowly made my way to a row of cabinets that _should_ contain dishes. As of right now, they contained a living being.

I slowly reached down and pulled open the cupboard. Nothing. I moved to the next one. Nothing. I tried the rest. Nothing. The more cabinets I opened, the more frustrated I became. I took a deep breath in, and let it out, slowly. Reaching out in the force, I, once again, found the presence, but something had changed. _The location._ The location of the presence had changed.

I felt long, cold fingers, with sharp nails reach around my neck and before I knew it, the world went dark.


	8. Finding the Sith

Chapter 8

_Ping Ping Ping_. I rolled over, moaning. _Ping ping ping. _I reached out to turn the alarm clock off. My fingers found nothing but cold air and durasteel. I peeked out of one eye and saw a familiar face looking down at me. _Kandra?_ _No. It could never be Kandra._ Her eyes were yellowed and her face was draped in shadow. _But… the figure had Kandra's small nose and full lips…_ I slowly opened my other eye. _Kandra._ _Yes, it is certainly Kandra Dailie._ As my eyes adjusted to the lighting, I reached out to Kandra through the Force. As soon as she felt my touch, she smirked. A raspy voice calls out, "Mistresssss. She is awake."

I watched Kandra's mouth move in tandem with the words. It wasn't her voice, yet she was the source of the sounds. _This is why the Jedi must be careful. We do not wish to become evil, as Kandra has. The Dark Side has changed her. _I struggled against the shackles that held my wrists and ankles together. Kandra laughed and watched me struggle into a sitting position. My head throbbed and, for a moment, my vision darkened around the edges. I blinked a few times and as soon as I could see clearly, I noticed a tall young woman standing before me. She had shimmering brown hair, tied up in a loose ponytail, fair skin, and twinkling brown eyes. A small scar curved up from the corner of her mouth, but it did not make her appear any less beautiful. If anything, it made her more so.

I stared at her, my jaw nearly on the floor. "Hello…" I managed.

She replied, "Hello. I assume that you are Briki'Fiind. Am I correct?"

I scowled. "Who's asking?"

"I am."

I rolled my eyes. _Who does she think she is? Seriously, she has a Sith working for her and now she has captured a Jedi… Wait… She can't be… _"Vestara Khai!?" I blurted.

"Perhaps."

"Fine. I am Briki. Why do you care?"

"You'll find out in time."

She turns to Kandra, "I am glad that you did not fail me again, Kandra. It would've been your last failure."

Kandra lowers her gaze to the durasteel grating in front of her foot and nodded slowly. "I apologize, Mistress." She said.

Vestara turned and left with Kandra close on her heels. The door slammed behind them, no doubt locking me in. I gingerly rose and stretched my stiff muscles. _How long have I been out? _It was irrelevant. It wouldn't have mattered if I was conscious or unconscious, I would've still been stuck on this ship and shackled.

I stood, looking around, trying to get a feel of my surroundings. Was I in space? Yes. I could feel the vibrations of the ships systems in the decking below my feet and the pull of the artificial gravity, which was not quite as strong as normal gravity, but still strong enough so that living beings stayed in their original shapes.

I heard a soft beeping noise coming from the comlink attached to my belt. I unclipped it and pressed the button to answer the call. All I heard was static. "Hello?" I said.

"Hello?" the voice on the other end replied.

The voice sounded familiar. "Sayaar? Is that you?"

"Yeah, now shut it. We only have a few minutes before the signal will go out. Use your datapad to get your coordinates and tell them to me."

"Uh… Okay, but are you sure? This co-"

"Of course I'm sure. Now tell me your coordinates!"

"Transmitting coordinates now… It looks like I'm somewhere near Ziost, in the Esstran Sector. Does that help?"

"Yeah, be careful out there, Sayaar out"

"Wait, Sayaar!" but it was too late, Sayaar had already hung up.

_Be prepared to fight, Sayaar,_ I thought to myself, _you never know who you might encounter._


	9. AUTHOR'S NOTE

**Author's Note: **

** Hey guys! I'm so sorry about the distance between updates! Part of the problem is that I am really busy sometimes, but I also have trouble figuring out what to write about. I guess I'm asking if you guys could comment on each new chapter to let me know what I should put in the next one. It would help me get more content out much faster, so please let me know what you'd like to see! :)**

-**Kurleetop**


	10. Rescue

**A/N: Hey guys, I'm going to be trying something new this chapter... please let me know if you don't like it! Thanks!**

Chapter 9

~Sayaar's POV~

I deactivated my comlink and stuffed it into a nearby satchel, along with some nutribars and water (Enough to last a few weeks), some extra clothes, and my datapad. I thought back to what briki had been trying to say when I interrupted her. I knew that she was warning me about a trap. Of course it was a trap. Why else would they have allowed her to keep her datapad and comlink? Sith aren't stupid. I knew what I was getting myself into, but I had to do it for my little sister. If I had been stuck in a Sith prison, she wouldn't let me sit there and rot. She would try to save me. So, that's exactly what I decided to do.

I spun around the corner and pressed the button to call the turbolift. As soon as it arrived, I stepped inside and chose the hangar level. I felt the movement of the car, and for a breif moment, was very thankful for inertial dampners. I didn't think turning into human jam would be the best start to saving my sister.

The lift stopped and the doors slid open. I stepped out into the corridor and began to sprint towards the hangar. I was almost through the door when I felt a familar presence stir and saw a tall figure jump out in front of me. _Tim... Great. Just great._

"STOP!" Tim shouted.

"Stop? Why should I stop? My sister was captured by SITH and YOU DON'T WANT ME TO GO LOOK FOR HER?" I shout back.

"No.. I don't mean it like that. I mean, let me go with you."

"Um... What?" I furrow my brow in confusion.

"You heard me. Let me go with you. You don't know what's out there and you're barely a Knight. How're you supposed to defend yourself, let alone rescue someone else? Oh, and by the way, I know you were planning on taking your Stealth-X, but double check how many seats it has. I think you'll need two for the trip home."  
I made a face at him. _Great, he not only demands to go with me, but he also tears apart my plan... Thanks Tim. _"Fine. You can come, but only because I don't want to waste MORE time. Do you have a ship?"

He coughed and slid his gaze towards the floor. "You've got to be kidding me," I said, growing more and more agitated, "You tell me that my plan is terrible, but you don't have a better one?"

"Alright.. Calm down... Um... Let's take that," he pointed to something off to his left.

I looked in the direction he was pointing only to see a pile of metal._ This _is not a ship. He must've seen my expression because he spoke again, "I know it doesn't look like much, but it has more to offer than you think. I overheard the captain talking about it in the dining hall. It has modified turrets and shields."

I have him a look and said, "Right, but tell me how you knew that the man you heard was the captain of THIS ship."

"I was on duty in the hangar the day he arrived. His name is Dor... or Dar.. or something like that."

I sighed and followed Tim into the ship. He sat down in the pilot's seat and gestured for me to sit in the copilot's seat. I sat and watched as the systems came online, one by one. I began to flip through the details about the ship and after no more than a minute of reading, I found the modifications that Tim had mentioned. I whistled at the impressive upgrades and nodded at Tim, "You were right, impressive ship."

He smirked and I could tell that he was trying to avoid saying 'I told you so'. I rolled my eyes and turned back towards the console. I ran through the pre-flight checklist and notified Tim that we were good to go. I felt the hum of the deck underneath me as the ship rose off the ground and glided out of the hangar, unnoticed.

Tim piloted the ship into the correct departure lane and opened a comm channel to ask for permission to leave the atmosphere. Once in space, I punched the coordinates into the navicomupter. The stars stretched into lines and the Sanguine Star jumped into hyperspace.


	11. Rescue: Part 2

~Briki's POV~

I had no idea how long I had been sitting in that cold, dark room, but time didn't matter. As long as I was here, nothing mattered, except for fighting off the urge to call on the Dark Side, like they asked. They... Not Vestara or Kandra, but the voices. The ones in my head. They would not tell me who they were, no matter how many times I asked. All they would tell me was that calling on the Dark Side was the right thing to do. It was the only way to save Sayaar and Jacmi and Leni... and even Master Skywalker. _Maybe I should... I don't want anything to happen to my friends... No. No way will I ever call on the Dark Side. Ever. But..._ The war inside my head, between light and dark, was never ending.

A moment later, or perhaps an hour or a day later, someone shined a light into the dark room. I opened my eyes slowly, and at first, was blinded by the light. As my eyes adjusted, I saw a figure standing in the doorway and heard Sith-Kandra's voice, "Come."

I rose slowly and crept towards the doorway. _What did they want with me? Why were they finally taking me out of that dreary cell? What was happening? _Shortly after leaving the cell, we reached the cockpit. Kandra shoved me into a seat. "Kandra, that's no way to treat our guest," Vestara turned to me, "Please forgive her."

I rolled my eyes at the suggestion and she continued. "Surely you're wondering why we've finally brought you out of your cell. It's so that you can see this."

As she finished speaking, a ship emerged from hyperspace directly in front of the Sith Vessel. Vestara opened a comm channel between the freighter and her own ship. "State your name and business, or we'll open fire."

For a long moment, there was nothing but static. A male voice crackled from the speakers, "Timothy Bencen. My navicomputer is broken... I was supposed to go to Corellia."

"Are you sure?" I could hear the malice in Vestara's voice as she spoke.

"Yes, ma'am. Very sure."

"I don't believe you," she cut the channel, "Kandra, open fire."

"No!" I shouted, but it was too late. Shots had been fired and, by the way the freighter looked, it would never last against the upgraded weapons of this ship.

To everyone's surprise, the shots were blocked by the ship's shield. "Wh- How? That can't happen! These laser cannons are strong enough to take out a ship like that in no more than two shots!"

I almost laughed, "It's got upgraded shields!"

A moment later, red bolts flashed from the freighter's cannons. The first round of shots was absorbed by the shields, but the majority of the second was able to break through. I felt the ship rock as the bolts struck. I heard Vestara yell something (that was probably cursing Sayaar and Tim) in a language that I did not recognize.

I took a deep breath and looked in Vestara's direction. "Let them board us. It's the only way to end this that doesn't require everyone dying."

To my surprise, Vestara agreed to allow Sayaar and Tim to board our ship. Within moments, they were standing on the other side of the cockpit doors. Vestara palmed the pad to open the doors.

I found myself between the Jedi and the Sith. Everyone stood, frozen in place, as if they had no intent to harm one another, until Kandra, crimson blade in hand, leapt at me.

**A/N: Hey everyone! Sorry about breaking that up into two parts... I had typed it up on two different computers and was too lazy to put them together in one chapter. Also, I am not going to update this story until I have at least three comments or messages. Sorry if that seems rediculous to you. I know I've never done it before, but I'd like to know 1. that people are coming back when I update and 2. what you guys want to happen. Please comment! **

**Thanks! :)**

**Kurlee**


	12. The Final Loss

It was like slow motion. Kandra was leaping at me, her lightsaber held tightly in her hand. I was frozen with fear, shock, and horror. It was my fault we were all here. I had put everyone in terrible danger. Now, I was going to die. Death was such a mystery. I had heard stories about death. My thoughts were stopped mid-train. A brilliant green blade ignited in front of me. The crimson blade was blocked expertly by the green. Tim had blocked the blow from slicing me in half. A look of surprise and rage flashed across Kandra's face. They stared at each other for a moment, locked in this deadly pose. Yellow eyes stared into beautiful gray-green. Then, they began to dance. A deadly dance of flashing energy to a fast tempo.

"Get back!" Tim shouted at me. Sweat broke on his brow from the pure concentration it took not to get sliced in half. Vestara, Sayaar and I watched, speechless, as they dueled. I felt a sudden wave in the Force, and Sayaar and Vestara lept at each other. I watched in horror as big brother single-handedly took on Vestara Khai, master of the dark side. Two deadly dances were going on, and I was not a part of either of them. I thought fast, thinking that I could help by first getting these wretched binders off. I looked around in the cockpit. _There was nothing there! _A sudden shudder rocked the whole ship. I stopped, wondering what it was. I reached out my senses, briefly sensing a new life form. Before I could tell who or what it was, I turned back to the horror that was playing out before my eyes. Tim had sensed the shudder too. It made come from towards the back of the ship. Tim slightly turned his head to get a sense of what was happening behind him. Kandra took this chance and lunged forward. A look of shock and pain appeared on Tim's face. His mouth gaped open, his eyes unfocused. Kandra pulled her lightsaber out of Tim's mid-section. He fell to his knees, the lightsaber falling out of his limp hand. Someone screamed. It took me a moment to realize that it had been me.

A wave of feeling powered over me like the tide. Looking back on it, that's the only way I can describe it: feeling. Something changed inside me, something snapped. I could see black behind my eyes, and other than that, I could only see Tim. Lying on the durasteel ground, with Kandra standing over him, triumphant. Without thinking, I called his green lightsaber to myself from his hand. I grabbed it mid-air, upside-down, and ignited it, cutting off my handcuffs. I flipped the saber right-side up and leaped. Again, it all happened in slow motion. Kandra, a triumphant smirk on her lips, pivoted slowly to face me. Suddenly, her head was separated from her body. I had sliced a clean cut across her neck. Her lifeless body crumpled to the ground. Vestara cried out in frustration.

Sayaar was losing. She was gaining ground rather quickly. I was not going to lose my big brother. I ran at Vestara's left side, Tim's and Kandra's lightsabers in hand. I fought with a fury that I didn't know I had. Vestara stepped away from me, not scared, but surprised. I hacked at her without any technique. She began to back away from my assult. Sayaar rushed at me. Vestara stumbled and fell back onto the navigation console. I went in to take the finishing blow. And stopped. What was I doing? Vestara smiled at me. "Yes. Give in, girl. Fuel your fury and kill me. Your path to the darkside will be complete."

I was lost. My sabers wavered uncertainty in the air. I deactivated them and fell to my knees. Sayaar ignited his and held it to Vestara's chest as insurance that she wouldn't move. I felt the life form again, stronger. Vestara's eyes flickered. Master Ben Skywalker ran into the cockpit and paused. I began to sob. I got up, leaving the lightsabers on the ground. I wrapped my arms around Master Ben, ashamed of what had happened. He wrapped his strong arms around me and held me for a moment. I felt a small, single tear of Ben's fall onto my head and trickle slowly down my yellow lekku. Then I remembered. Tim. I broke our embrace and ran to Tim's side. I fell to my knees. He was still alive, but just barely. I lifted his head gently and set it in my lap. He coughed.

"Tim! Oh, Tim I'm so sorry. So, so sorry," I said in between sobs. He weakly brought his hand up and caressed my face gently. I layed my head on his hand and let the tears flow. One hand held his to my face, while my other ran through his damp hair.

"It's okay, Brikki, I don't feel any pain." Tim said softly. "Don't you fret."

"No! You're going to be okay! We'll get you home, to the Temple. There'll be healers who can help. Mater Ben is here, he can help." I said rapidly. His eyes began to close, but they stayed looking right at me.

"I love.." He started.

"No! Don't do this, Timothy. We can save you."

"You." His eyes were no longer focused.

"No!" I sobbed hard. His hands had fallen to rest on his body. I fell onto his chest and cried out my pain. I felt a hand on my shoulder. It was Master Skywalker. I controlled my sobs, and, somehow, was able to stop. I sat back up, as calmly as I could manage. I lifted my shaking hand and closed Tim's eyes gently. Master Ben helped me up and guided me to Sayaar. They had taken Vestara's lightsaber and the ones I had dropped, so Vestara was now defenseless. My brother held me, and it was like we were little kids again.

There was a storm when we were younglings at the Temple. I had been terrified, huddled in a corner with a blanket. Sayaar had come into my room and held me close until the storm had passed. He set his chin on my head. Master Ben walked back over to us. He had taken his cloak and laid it over Tim and Kandra. Ben spoke.

"Vestara." He said stiffly.

"Ben."

"What are you doing here?" He asked suddenly. Vestara seemed conflicted by emotions. She started to speak, then stopped. Then started again.

"I wanted to see you, Ben." she finally said.

"You wanted to see me. You wanted to see me, and this is how you had to do it?" I had never seen him like this before. "Ves, two young people have lost their lives, because you couldn't send me a simple holomessage. Don't you see that what you have done is wrong?" She bowed her head. She seemed unsure.

"Vestara, come with us to the Jedi Temple. Ves, come with me."

"Why? Why would anyone want me, or even accept me in your precious 've always loved the Jedi Order more than you've ever loved me!"

"You know it's not like that, Ves."

"Don't call me that!"

"Ves, please. Come with me. Do this for us." Vestara's eyes flickered. She looked scared. She looked about to agree. Vestara lifted her head.

"I-I don't know Ben. I'm scared.  
"You don't have to be. Why? Because I'm here for you, and I always will be." Vestara turned and ran into the cockpit, and sealed the door. Before anyone could react, the cockpit itself had detached and was now flying away. It got farther away, then jumped into hyperspace. I didn't know that a 'ship' that small could have a hyperdrive.

"Now what?" Sayaar asked.

"Now? We go home." Ben answered, watching the place where Vestara had disappeared

**A/N: Hey guys! So, this chapter was partially written by my friend, Lindsey (She also wrote The Wrath of Vader, so check it out!), so I'd like to thank her for that. Also, this chapter has quite a bit of action and drama. It will (hopefully) bring the characters to life even more. :) Thanks to the guests that reviewed! Oh, right! This is the last chapter of Deception. I will be starting a sequel soon, but for now, this is it. Sorry guys! :P I hope you enjoyed it!**


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